The back wall was totally removed leaving a carved-out view into the back of this house. In the right image the framing seems to make giant heart ♥ These photos are a few weeks old, now much of the new framing has been put up. There’s the owner and contractor on the right, making important decisions I’m sure! Inside it’s all down to the studs. Here are the old cove framing half-moons. We’re raising the living room and kitchen ceilings, because there was about 24″ of scuttle-attic space above. The area on the left now has a new staircase framed in it, from the kitchen down to the first floor rooms, sort of like below:

This was a quick Sketchup rendering to figure out the stairs, which duck down behind the counter on the left. The lower window was to look into the stair, and the upper window out to the sky. It’s been modified partly by codes (amount of window allowed within 5′ of property line) and partly by the owner.

This is an old bay window that was removed – it looks like a typical SF foggy view. It was covered in plastic which was making thunderous noises in the wind, and the neighbors wanted it taken down….Here’s the raised, angled ceiling framing over the kitchen. The ceiling drops flat over the Dining Rm, then raises again in the Living Rm beyond. more to come~